Eddard ("Ned") Stark, MBE (winterishere) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2012-03-19 01:58:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, eddard stark, galadriel |
Who: Galadriel & Ned
What: First meeting
When: 1997
Where: Galadriel's place
Rating: PG-13
Status: Complete
There was something a little counter-intuitive about these grand Charity galas. For one, it made Ned wonder how much of the donors' contributions actually went to people in need, and how much of it was just dumped into 'administrative costs', supposedly used to keep the non-profit organisation running but was in actual fact used to pay certain people wee little bonuses and, well, for events like these.
He hadn't wanted to come, actually, but Catelyn told him to stop worrying - easier said than done; he was always worrying and there were plenty of things to worry about - and she reminded him that he was more or less duty-bound to show up, both because of his commitment to the cause and because he had to network if Direwolf Consulting was going to get anywhere in the next few years. But standing here now, he still felt they should be at home looking after the kids. If the babysitter hadn't arrived when she did, they would have gotten into another full-blown argument (about the worrying, about Jon - in the end it was always about Jon) and maybe he would have never come.
It was getting late, and by now Ned had already made the necessary rounds. Said hello to at least a hundred faces - he was supposed to know all of them but he'd be lucky if he could remember half - handed out business cards, talked about business, joked about business, and occasionally, in line with the reason they were here tonight, they would switch back to the topic of their philanthropic contributions and how they were bettering the world. At the very least, some of them were making themselves feel better by devoting half a percent of their enormous profits to charity, thinking that a wee bit of small change was changing the world.
Giving in to the festering craving for a smoke, Ned excused himself from the small talk happening in their little circle of tailored suits and million-dollar smiles. When he came back in, he stopped by the bar first to get a whiskey; it was his standard panacea for the pains of attending functions like these. While he waited for his drink, Ned briefly entertained the fantasy of leaving this place and all the pretentious company early.